Over the past two completed baseball seasons, I have discussed a topic that honestly does not get enough attention. While a lot of the theatrics (bat flips, demonstrative reactions after a recorded strike outs, slow trots around the bases) will always reluctantly have a place in the game, it is amazing how the conduct of individual players, managers, coaches and umpires gets tolerated by the mainstream baseball media. The most obvious example was former MLB OF Nyjer Morgan, a player who continually refused to act professional on the diamond while acting more like a misbehaving 13 year old. Nyger has been an inspiration for an award I call the NMA (Nyjer Morgan Award), named after each of the past three seasons for the player, manager, coach or umpire who seems to go out of his way to start a problem with another player or team. The winner after the 2013 season was Luis Cruz - courtesy of his inciting the hard core brawl between teams Mexico and Canada during the World Baseball Classic. Last year, the award belonged to Carlos Gomez, who at that point was playing for the Milwaukee Brewers. If you have not read either of my first two pieces, here are the links.

Looking back in the history of baseball, it is easy to call out players such as Manny Ramirez, Pascual Perez, Roger Clemens and others who completely incited an unnecessary altercation with another team. It is understandable that things like this will happen when the seriousness of competition hits the fan. But, there is a difference between competitive emotions getting the best of you and a bush league unprovoked attack on another player (either verbal or physical). The latter is what I document in my piece. Please feel free to use the comment section to add insight and opinion. The following is my top five boneheads of the 2015 MLB season.

5. Troy Tulowitzki, Toronto Blue Jays. Troy had the benefit of going from a team waiting for another season to finally be finished to a team with a chance to win the World Series. Surely, the acquisition of the former Colorado Rockies star SS helped the Blue Jays advance as far as they did. However, the talent of the Blue Jays roster was probably good enough to win the AL East without Tulo. Game five of the ALDS between the Texas Rangers and Jays was entertaining and obviously had a lot of emotion. However, Tulowitzki went overboard when he incited a fight with Rangers RHP Sam Dyson after a polite conversation by home plate after an inning was over. Dyson himself had overreacted when he thought Jays DH Edwin Encarnacion was showing him up earlier in the inning. By the end of the inning, the issue was over. No reason for Troy to start things up again. Especially with a pitcher that simply gave him a tap in the rear as a way to say, "Let's move on."

4. Hansel Robles, New York Mets. Ever since Latroy Hawkins pitched for the Mets in 2013, Mets pitchers have been executing the "quick pitch" as a way to keep a hitter off balance. Jeurys Familia and Jennry Mejia are the most known to use the pitch. Somewhere along the line, the idea of the quick pitch was given to Hansel Robles. However, an important part of the delivery of the pitch was left out. See, while the pitch is intended to keep the hitter off balance while not completely ready to hit, there has to be a measure of safety taken. When a hitter has a ball coming at them when they are nowhere near set or even looking in the direction of the pitcher, the batter's safety is put at risk. Robles, on two separate occasions against the Philadelphia Phillies, threw a ball at to a batter who was in no way prepared to hit. The second time, Phillies catcher Cameron Rupp was almost hit in the head. For Robles to not be paying attention to the batter being in the box and ready to hit once can be considered an oversight. For it to happen again, is completely unacceptable. I am neither for or against the quick pitch, but when it leaves a hitter defenseless against a pitch of 95 or more MPH, there is no reason for it in the game.

3. Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays. I applaud Jose Bautista for what he has done since 2010 at age 29. His story is an inspiration to players who do not star right away as well as those who could be late bloomers. However, Jose seems to carry a burden around with him whenever he plays the game. One that seems to be a little more than what we would consider a competitive fire. He is very short on umpires, cannot be pitched to inside without thinking he is being thrown at and seems to always be in the middle of an altercation with another team. My question has always been, "why is he always so mad?" His actions in the game against the Orioles this season set him apart and he continued it into games against Kansas City during the season and into the postseason against the Rangers and Royals. I am not against the bat flips and the antics with things like that, but I am against a player who always seems like he is ready to start a fight with somebody on the field.

2. Sean Rodriguez, Pittsburgh Pirates. SImilar to Carlos Gomez of 2014, Rodriguez gets a little credit for something that happened in the previous year. Rodriguez was right in the middle of a Tampa Bay Rays/ Boston Red Sox incident in 2014 and seemed to not get over his problems in 2015 with the Pirates. In spring training, he challenged Phillies RHP Kevin Slowey to a fight after he was struck out. Prior to the final pitch for the strikeout, he was quick pitched. Looking at the video, it seemed pretty harmless. Rodriguez looked like a hothead yelling at anybody that was near. During the Pirates' Wild Card Game against the Cubs, Rodriguez decided he wanted to gain some attention to himself and charged the field like a madman looking for a fight. Cubs RHP Jake Arrieta was just hit by Pirates LHP Tony Watson as a means of retaliation for an incident earlier in the game. If not for Rodriguez, this incident would not have been as big a deal as it was. He tops it off by lying about things afterwards, saying "it was because David Ross put his hand around my neck." While that may or not be true, somebody needed to stop this uncontrollable freak from running on the field like a possessed lunatic.

1. Yordano Ventura, Kansas City Royals. This one seemed pretty easy, similar to Luis Cruz' actions in the 2013 WBC. When Ventura challenged first Mike Trout, then Adam Eaton, leading to two bench clearing incidents that both could have been avoided, I told myself, "what could beat this?" Plus, it both had happened by the end of April! Unlike 2013, there was a Sean Rodriguez that made it closer than I ever could have imagined. Almost to a point where I considered a co-champion for 2015. But when I looked at each incident, I realized how out of line Ventura was. In the case with the Angels, Ventura had no reason to complain about a single to center field. Ventura stared him down to first base. And watching the White Sox thing, all Adam Eaton did was hit a ball back to him. Ventura's actions are why this award (fictitious award) was created. Hopefully the veterans in the KC clubhouse have helped Ventura grow up a little bit since April and winning a World Series Championship would humble a player who acted no better than an inmate who was just released from prison after having his mouth taped shut for six months.

Last year, I put together the list of the biggest boneheads in major league baseball. I named the award after former Pirates, Nationals, Brewers and Indians OF Nyjer Morgan. Morgan, of course, is known for a series of bonehead incidents while playing for the Nationals and Brewers. Not boneheaded in the sense of lackadaisical, but boneheaded in the sense of there is no need for it. The NMA is designed to remind these players and umpires that fans come to see the game, not them. And if you say the fans come to see the players, the obvious truth is fans come to see the players play baseball- not make a mockery of the sport.

In my opinion, there is no doubt that Nyjer Morgan made a mockery of baseball with his actions in the Nationals/ Marlins game and then again during the 2011 Pennant Race between the Brewers and Cardinals. In fact, perhaps it was Morgan that willed the Cardinals to victory by saying so coyly that the Cardinals should enjoy watching the playoffs from TV. Of course, the Cardinals won the World Series that season. It is my intention to call out the biggest boneheads of the 2014 season. Because of that, I only came up with a top 4 as opposed to the top 5 from last year.

4. Yunel Escobar, SS, Tampa Bay Rays- Similar to the situation during the 2013 World Baseball Classic which netted Luis Cruz the NMA for last season, Escobar was involved in taking an extra base when a game had seemed to be already decided. The only difference was the rules in the WBC stated that tiebreakers were based on the total amount of runs scored. In the WBC case, it was a misunderstanding. Escobar was clearly aware of the game and how it was not necessary to take the extra base. However, it probably wasn't the biggest bush league move as the Rays were up 8-3 in the bottom of the 7th inning. That being said, taking that extra base was not necessary and it was understood why the Red Sox dugout was ticked off. I would have been easier on Escobar if he simply ignored the jawing from the dugout. Once he decided to fight back, he clearly went into the wrong in my opinion. And therefore, he gets a nomination on my NMA Bonehead of the Year. 3. Manny Machado, 3B, Baltimore Orioles- Few players in baseball had as disappointing a season than Machado. Between having a difficult time recovering from knee surgery he had in the off season. His last game was played on August 11 as he missed the rest of the regular season and the entire postseason. Machado was running the bases in a game against the Oakland Athletics and was trying to avoid a tag from Athletics 3B Josh Donaldson. Donaldson applied the tag and Machado confronted the Atheltics 3B for tagging him too hard. That would be enough to end the situation. Machado's next at bat was against LHP Fernando Abad. Abad threw a pitch inside, followed by a pitch that may have been inside, but Machado was able to get a full swing in. He intentionally let go of his bat, sending it in the direction of Donaldson. Machado was ejected from the game for his actions and later suspended 5 games by MLB. Machado seemed as if he hadn't forgotten his scuffle with Donaldson, but later said he was intending to throw the bat in the direction of Abad. 2. Joe West, umpire- Last year, two umpires were nominated for this award, with Angel Hernandez and Tom Hallion making the list. Year in and year out it is easy to find a couple of incidents not handled professionally by West. Joe West is the prime example of an umpire that thinks the fans pay money to see him. He is not the star of the show, yet he really thinks he is. West's actions that made the 2014 list happened in a game where a player was in the process of making a fool of himself. The Marlins were in Philadelphia and the Phillies had brought in closer Jonathan Papelbon to close a 4-1 game. Things did not go right and Papelbon had already given up the lead, taken out with the Marlins ahead 5-4. As expected, the Phillies fans let their closer have it as he came off the field. Papelbon did cross the line with his obscene gesture to the fans. This was enough for Papelbon to have to face the music for what he did. At this point, what was done had been done. Not in the eyes of the game's biggest narcissist. West once again made the game about him, deciding to throw Papelbon out of the game. It may have had some credence had Papelbon not already been taken out of the game. The prime example of a redundant act. It wasn't as if Papelbon was not headed to the clubhouse anyways. You think he was going to stay in the dugout after such a performance? 1. Carlos Gomez, OF, Milwaukee Brewers- Gomez could have very well made the list last season. I held him off because there were bigger boneheads than him last season plus the fact that the award is named after a fellow former Brewers OF Nyjer Morgan. His actions in the game against the Braves and pitcher Paul Maholm were unacceptable, but he was taken off the hook because it was the second time Braves C Brian McCann had gotten in the face of a runner jogging home after hitting a HR. Gomez admits he is prone to getting into fights because his androgen level gets quite high (wikipedia.org). Standing at the plate and admiring a home run is something we commonly see in the game today. However, if the ball does not leave the yard it has to be an embarrassing feeling. In addition, you showed up the other team and they have the right to say something to you as you stop at the base you ended up at. In this case, Gomez made it to third and apparently did not like what Pirates RHP Garrett Cole had to say as Cole walked back to the mound. Gomez would end up in a rage, flipping out trying to take on anybody that was in his way. Add in his actions in 2013 and Carlos Gomez is your 2014 recipient of the Nyjer Morgan Award. If this award was actually handed out, I would have Morgan hand it out to his former teammate. Gomez would probably feel it was an honor.

There have been few MLB players who I have been more critical of than former Pirates, Nationals and Brewers OF Nyjer Morgan. And perhaps it is something I should back off soon. As it has been announced that Morgan will not return to the Japanese Yokohama team next season, there is a good chance he will land a job back in major league baseball as a 4th OF or even a platoon starting situation in the right spot. In that regard, I wish him the best. He is still a very serviceable player who put up decent to good numbers at Yokohama. I am presented my own award, which goes to the biggest bonehead of the MLB season, and I am calling it the "Nyjer Morgan Award", presented by www.johnpielli.com. I guess my disdain for @theRealTPlush comes from a series of incidents that happened within a little more than a year from each other. There was his barreling over of a defenseless catcher who was nowhere near the plate against the Marlins. While playing for the Nationals, his hit on Brett Hayes was uncalled for. What was worse was his reaction after being hit in retaliation for it, which escalated the situation. I am not saying he should have taken it, but to show up the team by stealing bases in a meaningless time of the game added to the fact that he was already wrong by hitting the catcher for no reason. If that was the one time he brought the negative vibes to himself, I could deal with it. Then there was him sticking his head into the Brewers/ Cardinals rivalry of 2011. His unprovoked shouting match with Cardinals RHP Chris Carpenter seemed like a cry for attention, and maybe an attempt to prove himself as a "Brewer". With the fact that Carpenter has a reputation for antagonizing opposing players, that was another situation where if it was isolated, it would have been forgotten. Then there was the bold statements regarding the Cardinals playoff chances, which in itself simply made him look foolish. The Cardinals defeated the Brewers to win the NL Pennant and eventually the 2011 World Series. Add in the fact that he intentionally yelled "fuck yeah" knowing it was going to be heard on air on TBS, I have found it very difficult to endear myself to this man. Perhaps if he signed with my favorite baseball team, the New York Mets, I would give it one last chance. But Nyjer Morgan is not the only associated with MLB that stands out as being a bonehead. 2013 was full of moments like that, from Mets SS Ruben Tejada's overall cocky attitude almost costing him a job to some of the umpires either doing a terrible job at what they get paid to do or going on a world tour with the hopes that the general public knows their name. I came up with the five biggest boneheads in MLB for the 2013 season. But, before I get into them, here are some honorable mentions: Brewers OF Carlos Gomez was clearly in the wrong when he took his grudge with Braves LHP Paul Maholm too far in a game in Milwaukee. Starting a fight with the entire Atlanta Braves team did not make Gomez look good, but to this point, this is the only time I have seen Carlos Gomez act that way. Dodgers OF Yasiel Puig burst onto the scene and pretty much saved the Los Angeles Dodgers 2013 season. He did not do it without some questionable hick-ups though. The fact that he became enraged during an altercation with the Arizona Diamondbacks is justified as he was hit in the face. His lack of hustle and overstated bravado have made him as many enemies as fans. Mets infielder Jordany Valdespin has hopefully learned his lesson after running himself off the New York Mets. He has not proven himself to be an MLB player, let alone one who can spout off at veteran teammates and then his manager after being sent down to AAA. Getting popped for a 50 game PED suspension did not help. However, the Mets players and perhaps management decided to isolate Valdespin, which put them in the fire. They deserved some criticism for allowing Jordany to get hit by Pirates RHP Bryan Morris in a game after Valdespin admired a HR in a game that had been decided already. Valdespin should not have done what he did, but to let the Pirates discipline him made the Mets look small. Marlins RHP Jose Fernandez showed up the Braves a little bit in a game this past season. I did not look at this as a serious bonehead move, but one that should be stated. Braves 3B Chris Johnson looked just as silly when he involved himself, then intentionally took a scared route around all the players. (It was clear he wanted to speak but wanted to nothing to do with backing up what he had to say.) I am sure many others can be mentioned in regards to incidents that happened this season, so feel free to let me know. Before I get into my top five, I need to mention the consistent bad performance of umpire CB Bucknor, a man who I am sure tries very hard, but he is among the worst at what he does. Without further due, here are my top five boneheads of 2013 in MLB. 5. Carlos Quentin, OF, San Diego Padres: I would have ranked him a little higher as my initial reaction to his actions in the LA game had me more upset than I currently am. But, Carlos Quentin had no reason to rush the mound after he was hit by the Zack Greinke. While stating he was hit by Greinke twice before, he failed to acknowledge the fact that he stands closer to the plate than any other MLB hitter and is frequently among the most hit batters in all of MLB. If he has such a problem getting hit, maybe it is time to back off the plate. 4. Umpire Tom Hallion: Hallion has had enough of a reputation for being a hothead. Maybe he simply needs some anger management. However, his actions during a Rays game in Chicago simply make Hallion look silly. After what arguably seemed like a small strike zone by Rays LHP David Price, it seemed like Price composed himself professionally walking off the field after the 7th and final inning of his outing. Was he happy? No, but he did nothing to show up Hallion. Hallion took his mask and said, "Throw the fucking ball over the plate!", enraging the Rays bench and leading to his subsequent ejection of Rays RHP Jeremy Hellickson. Hallion then called Price and the Rays bench a "liar" when asked about it after the game. My two cents: The Rays bench would not have reacted the way it did had Hallion not made that statement. Fans come out to see the players play baseball, not Tom Hallion. 3. Umpire Angel Hernandez: This will be my final time I cite a MLB umpire in this piece (#HoldUmpiresAccountable). Similar to Bucknor, there is no doubt that Angel Hernandez is one of the worst at doing his job. This was something known prior to his actions in a game between the Oakland Athletics and Cleveland Indians when he was named temporary crew chief when Gerry Davis was unable to participate in Oakland. A ball hit by Athletics infielder Adam Rosales was ruled a double on the field when there was uncertainty over whether it went over the HR line or not. The umpires went to watch the video replay of it, which should have shown inconclusively that the ball hit the railing above the yellow line over the fence in right center field. As the crew chief, Hernandez refused to overturn the improper call. After ejecting Athletics manager Bob Melvin, MLB determined that Hernandez made the incorrect call, even though instant replay was used. 2. Brian McCann, catcher, Atlanta Braves: I, personally, like the fact that Brian McCann defends his teammates and has the reputation for being a very good leader. That should translate well to his new team, the New York Yankees. And the two particular incidents were provoked by Jose Fernandez and Carlos Gomez, respectively. But, McCann does look like a bonehead after taking it upon himself to be the police on the diamond. Many players show up the opposition by admiring home runs, and in my opinion, Fernandez did nothing more than what guys like Yasiel Puig and David Ortiz do on a nightly basis. If the first instance does not happen, the second is not blown up as much as it was. I thought McCann overreacted with the Fernandez situation, though he was correct with the way he handled the Gomez one. And while I admire McCann for defending his teammates, there is no one MLB player in charge of morality. 1. Luis Cruz, 3B, team Mexico in WBC, Dodgers, Yankees: I find it amazing that the biggest bonehead in 2013 happened to be over an incident during MLB's spring training. I figured somebody would have topped it during the long MLB season, and subsequent postseason. But Cruz, who currently is not playing for a MLB team and was let go twice during the season, still owns the prize. Not only did Cruz provoke a nasty brawl between team Mexico and team Canada, but the fact that he did not understand the rules of the tournament made him look even more foolish. After Canada OF Shane Robinson laid down a bunt to reach via a hit while Canada held a decisive lead, Cruz openly signaled to his pitcher to hit the next batter. The rules of the tournament stated that if teams finished with the same records, one of the ways of determining which team moved on was total runs scored. Cruz' voice was heard, which led to three pitches being thrown inside to the next batter, the last which incited the aggressive brawl between the two teams. Cruz recently signed a contract with the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Japanese Professional League. Perhaps I missed some other boneheads in MLB in 2013. Feel free to comment if there are any that strike your ire. Just remember, bitter feelings towards a manager for a team not doing well really dont count. Neither do underachieving players. Congratulations to Luis Cruz on winning the first annual "Nyjer Morgan Award", presented by www.johnpielli.com.

I bought into the thought that some of the best teams in baseball in 2013 would be the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers. Lets face it, even if you were not impressed with the Jays offseason, a logical baseball mind would not have Toronto AND both Los Angeles teams in the position they are in right now. Of course, that is why the games are played and nobody really knows what teams will be at the top each season. Chemistry is usually an issue with teams that make a lot of changes, and though that could be the case in Toronto and with the Dodgers, the Angels added Josh Hamilton, Tommy Hanson and Jason Vargas to a team that put together a solid second half to finish with a 89-73 record. The Angels right now seem to be playing their best baseball right now out of the three. They have played .500 baseball over their last 30 games, going 12-8 in their last 20 and have won 8 of their last 10. They have been without their best starting pitcher Jared Weaver since April 7 and their starting CF Peter Bourjos since April 29. However, injuries are not an excuse- just ask the Yankees. The Angels have used 10 different starting pitchers (7 for the final two spots) and have suffered through a bad start from Hamilton, though Hamilton has started to hit of late. Weaver is set to return soon and I think that will help the Angels tremendously. In addition, this is a team that should make up some wins against a bad Astros team and a team in Seattle that is expected to faulter. At least for now, it looks like the talk has calmed over the imminent firing of manager Mike Scioscia. The Blue Jays have been a big disappointment. Yes, the injury to Jose Reyes is a big blow to the team, but what has been so baffling is the poor performance from the team's starting pitchers. RA Dickey has been inconsistent, but has still been the team's best starting pitcher (4-6, 4.85). Josh Johnson could miss the rest of this season, but the team was counting on guys like Brandon Morrow (2-3, 5.50) and Mark Buehrle (2-3, 5.51). JA Happ has been out since he was hit in the face with a line drive, but his 4.91 ERA was not what the team expected when he made the team out of spring training. Other facets of the game have worked out, as the bullpen has been good and they have hit. But, at 22-29, this is unacceptable for this point of the season. Of late, the Jays have played better, going 12-8 in their last 20 games. The Dodgers were thought of to had the best group of players, hands down, in baseball. But if you watched the way they played after they made the trade with the Red Sox last season, it was not like they were playing at a higher level. In fact, a once poised team to make the playoffs were eliminated in mid September last season. They continued to go for it this past offseason, adding Zack Greinke and Hyun Jin Ryu to their starting rotation, with Greinke being out since his fight with Carlos Quentin. Hanley Ramirez has also been out. But a case could be made that the Dodgers have played worse than the other two teams. Matt Kemp has hit just 2 HR and is hitting .253. For a team that had spent a lot of money, they went through a lot of options until sticking with Nick Punto at SS. As far as 3B, they have used Jerry Hairston, Luis Cruz, Juan Uribe, Dee Gordon, Justin Sellers and Skip Schumaker filling in for Ramirez. A once overfilled starting rotation is now using guys like Matt Magill and Stephen Fife in their rotation. Clayton Kershaw has pitched phenominal (5-3, 1.68) and Ryu has pitched well (5-2, 3.30). The other starters have not with Josh Beckett and Chris Capuano a combined 1-8 with an ERA at about 5.50. Of course, Beckett is on the DL as well. Remember when the Dodgers had Kershaw, Greinke, Ryu, Beckett, Chad Billingsley, Capuano, Ted Lilly and Aaron Harang. Harang just pitched a complete game for Seattle and three of the other starters are now injured. To me, this is a team that has underperformed all around. When it comes to the managers, it is understandable that Dodgers manager Don Mattingly is on the hot seat. He may not make it to the All Star break if the Dodgers do not turn it around or show some signs that they can. Larry Bowa could be a logical replacement. Little discussion has been heard regarding Blue Jays manager John Gibbons and his job security, which may suggest he has little to worry about. I do think he should be held responsible for what has transpired here. In the Jays situation does not improve, particularly with the starting pitching, I would expect to see Gibbons removed for a more pitching oriented manager like a Larry Rothschild or Ray Miller. As for Scioscia, the Angels have improved and should get even better with Weaver coming back. However, if Scioscia was let go, he would have a new job in a week.

Perhaps it was nothing more than ironic or coincidental that Luis Cruz happens to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers and San Diego Padres were involved in a bench clearing brawl last night that could have easily been avoided. Cruz, of course, is known as the 3B from team Mexico who demanded out loud that his pitcher throw at the next batter after a Canadian player bunted for a base hit while ahead by several runs. Last night's bonehead was Carlos Quentin, who completely took it upon himself to start the fight between LA and San Diego. Quentin had faced Dodgers RHP Zack Greinke several times, dating back to Quentin's time with the White Sox and Greinke's time in Kansas City. The fact that Greinke had hit him twice prior to last night's game was not alarming based on the amount of times the two faced each other. Add in the fact that Quentin stands way too close to the plate and it is not a surprise he is amount the league leaders annually when it comes to being hit by a pitch. But Carlos Quentin decided it was time to charge the mound, perhaps he was tired of getting hit. Greinke could have had his part in this, however, I see no intent with the count 3-2 of a 1 run game in the 6th inning. And if it was intentional, what was he hitting him for? To prove what? To retaliate for what? To me, this is an example of a hitter deciding to randomly go out to the mound. And of course, Greinke ends up with a broken collarbone, an injury that could keep the $147 million pitcher on the shelf for a couple months. So not only did Quentin do something completely uncalled for and for no reason, but he injured the Dodgers pitcher in the process. Nice going. As foolish as I thought Cruz looked during the WBC, Cruz's problem was he did not know the rules in the WBC. The tiebreaker to move on to the next round was based on total runs scored. Cruz did not know that and thought Chris Robinson was running up the score by bunting with Canada up 9-3. At least that could be considered a misunderstanding. The Dodgers and Padres play again on Monday. It is expected that MLB will hand down a suspension to Quentin by then. If not, it would be deserved that the first Dodgers pitcher to face him should hit him on the first pitch. I would expect MLB to see this coming. Funny thing is, most MLB players suspended for fighting like to appeal the suspensions. If the penalties are announced too late, Quentin may play Monday. Maybe the Dodgers get a chance at some payback. But it is impossible to replace what they have lost with the injury to Greinke. Something that could have completely been avoided. On a side note, if either Quentin or Matt Kemp thought Quentin's HBP was "retalliation" for a high (and not inside) 0-2 pitch from Jason Marquis to Kemp, I suggest they look at the replay of that pitch.

Nobody spends money now a days like the Los Angeles Dodgers. Led by the new ownership group run by Magic Johnson and Stan Kasten, the Dodgers have spent freely ever since the middle of last season when they traded for Hanley Ramirez. They followed that up by landing Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett in the mega trade with the Boston Red Sox and made an off season splash by signing free agent RHP Zack Grienke. This team has a high percentage of the game's best players led by their own stars, Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp. The question is not how good of a team this looks on paper. It is more of how good of chemistry they can have which seemed to be a problem towards the end of last season. The 2012 Dodgers finished 86-76 after leading the NL West for a good part of the season. The Dodgers starting pitching staff is so deep, that is has three solid MLB starters who cannot fit in the team's projected rotation. Chris Capuano (12-12, 3.72), Aaron Harang (10-10, 3.61) and Ted Lilly (5-1, 3.14 after going 12-14, 3.97 in 2011) would all fit in as 3 or 4 starters on a majority of other MLB teams. Kershaw (14-9, 2.53, 229 Ks) is the number one with Greinke (15-5, 3.48) right behind him. They also signed Hyun Jin Ryu, who should average around a strikeout an inning and will serve as the team's number 3 starter. Josh Beckett (7-14, 4.65) was 2-3, 2.93 in 7 starts with the Dodgers last season. Chad Billingsley (10-9, 3.55) has been a solid starter in the team's rotation for the past couple seasons. The question is what to do with Lilly, Harang and Capuano, as it is unlikely all three will be in the LA bullpen this season. It would not be a surprise to see two of them traded very soon. Having Brandon League (3-6, 3.13, 15 saves) around all season should solidify the 9th inning. Kenley Jensen (5-3, 2.35, 25 saves) had 99 Ks in 65 innings and performed as well as any reliever in the NL last season outside of Craig Kimbrel and Aroldis Chapman. They also added JP Howell (1-0, 3.04 in 55 games) from Tampa Bay and Kevin Gregg from Baltimore. However, Gregg is coming off a bad season in an otherwise perfect Orioles 2012 bullpen. Ronald Belisario (8-1, 2.54 in 68 games) was the Dodgers top setup man last year, giving the Dodgers a solid top four in the bullpen. 26 year old RHP Josh Wall is expected to help out as well. Veteran Matt Guerrier is also in the mix. All that being said, it adds to the point how doubtful it would be to see Capuano, Lilly or Harang part of the mix in the pen. I'd line the relievers up like this: League, Jensen, Belisario, Howell, Wall, Guerrier and leave the last spot for either Gregg or one of the before mentioned starters. Kemp played in just 106 games last season and that was a major factor. At the time he got hurt, he was as hot a hitter in the game. He struggled down the stretch, finishing off at .303, 23, 69. Crawford is expected to be healthy after undergoing Tommy John surgery last season. Ramirez will miss the first 6-8 weeks of the season as he recovers from a WBC injury. Gonzalez (.299, 18, 108) has lost some power, but is still one of the top run producing 1Bs in the game. Andre Ethier (.284, 20, 89) will patrol RF with utility players Nick Punto and Jerry Hairston, Jr holding down 3B until Ramirez is ready. Free agent bust Juan Uribe is also an option. WBC bozo and fight instagator Luis Cruz will start the season at SS and slide to 3B when Ramirez returns. AJ Ellis (.270, 13, 52) was productive in his first season as the team's starting catcher. Veterans Mark Ellis (.258, 7, 31) and Skip Schumaker (.276, 1, 28) will get the bulk of the time at 2B. The lineup with Ramirez should look great. Crawford LF, Ellis C, Gonzalez 1B, Kemp CF, Ramirez SS, Cruz 3B, Ellis/ Schumaker 2B. Punto, Hairston, Uribe and either Ellis or Schumaker gives LA one of the deeper benches in the NL. The Dodgers have high expectations based on the moves they have made. Vegas has their over/under at 90. I predict a 96-66 finish, 1st place in the NL West division. If the Dodgers fail this season, I think heads will roll. Manager Don Mattingly and GM Ned Colletti are in a good position, but one or both will pay the price for a disappointing 2012 season.

As I have reached number 11 in my countdown previews, it has come down to the last team I have on the outside looking in. If you have followed my previous previews, you see what teams I have in the playoffs. Let the discussion continue, as these predictions are my own. I have not depended on opinions of others and certainly have not used the standard reference of baseball prospectus. The St Louis Cardinals made the postseason in spite of the loss of manager Tony LaRussa, star slugger Albert Pujols and renown pitching coach Dave Duncan. They battled the eventual World Series Champion San Francisco Giants to a seven game NLCS. The Cardinals have a strong core coming back this season but will likely be without ace Chris Carpenter for the entire season. This sounds like deja vu, as they were told the same fate prior to last season. Carpenter returned to make 3 starts in September and being part of the postseason rotation. It is unclear whether that is a possibility this time around. Their 16 game winner and leader in 2012 NL winning percentage Kyle Lohse is still a free agent with the Cardinals unlikely to bring him back. However, the Cardinals bring back a core of strong starting pitchers led by free agent to be Adam Wainwright (14-13, 3.94). Jake Westbrook (13-11, 3.97), Lance Lynn (18-7, 3.98) and Jaime Garcia (7-7, 3.97) give the Cardinals a dependable four with Shelby Miller likely to land the 5th spot. Miller, 22, made 1 start last season and appeared in a total of 6 games, posting a 1.32 ERA with 16 Ks in 13 2/3 IP. Trevor Rosenthal and Joe Kelly are top pitching prospects that can be expected to start or relieve this season, as both contributed in last year's postseason run. I would expect Rosenthal (0-2, 2.28 with 25 Ks in 22 2/3 IP) to contribute as a reliever if he is not put in the rotation this season. His high 90s fastball and nasty secondary pitchers could set him up to close or be a dominant starter. Jason Motte (4-5, 2.75, 42 saves) will remain the closer for the distant future. His 2012 season (86 Ks in 72 IP) does not get a lot of attention. Edwin Mujica (0-3, 3.03, 70 games) and Mitchell Boggs (4-1, 2.21, 78 games) will be the primary set up men from the right side. Mujica pitched to a 1.03 ERA in 29 games after he was acquired from the Marlins last season. Marc Rzepczynski (1-3, 4.24, 70 games) and free agent Randy Choate (0-0, 3.03, 80 games) will provide manager Mike Matheny with two dependable options from the left side. I expect Rosenthal to make a huge impact this season. John Jay will be the starting CF again this season, but the question is for how long? Oscar Tavarez (the number 3 overall MLB prospect according to MLB.com) is expected to be ready this season. Jay (.305, 4, 40 in 105 games) has proven he can hold the job, but is more likely to be the odd man out with Carlos Beltran (.269, 32, 97) and Matt Holliday (.295, 27, 102) the other starting OFs. Allen Craig (.307, 22, 92 in 119 games) will be the starting 1B, as his slugging percentage remains one of the highest in the game even with the limited ABs. Yadier Molina (.315, 22, 76) had his best offensive season as the team's catcher. David Freese (.293, 20, 79) will man 3B with Matt Carpenter (.294, 6, 46) expected to make the transition from the OF/ 1B role to starting 2B. Skip Schumaker did it previously and before that Kelly Johnson with Atlanta, so it can be done, especially one with the bat of Carpenter. SS is the main hole in this offense. Rafael Furcal's season may be over before it started and the team just released Ronny Cedeno. This means the team will go with a combo of Pete Kozma (.333, 2, 14 in 72 ABs) and Daniel Descalso (.227, 4, 26). Kozma was a weak hitting minor league INF before he came up last September and hit. The Cardinals will be in a market for a middle infielder especially with Carpenter needing a late inning defensive replacement. The Cards lineup should look like this: Jay CF, Beltran RF, Holliday LF, Craig 1B, Molina C, Freese 3B, Carpenter 2B, Kozma/ Descalso SS. Veteran Ty Wigginton comes in to back up on the corner INF and OF, with Shane Robinson, Adron Chambers and back-up catcher Tony Cruz finishing off the bench. The Cardinals are always equipped fro September, when they seem to play their best baseball. The young pitchers could make the rotation one of the best in baseball or they can quickly miss the veterans in Chris Carpenter and Lohse. Vegas has their over/ under at 85 1/2, and I think they are right on. I have the Cardinals at 86-76, 2nd place in the NL Central, just like last season. Unfortunately, that will not be enough to make the postseason. The Cardinals won 88 games last season, so the difference is that little.